Politico: Obama Assassination May Be ‘Catalyst’ To ‘Reform The Secret Service’

Amid a series of high profile mistakes by the Secret Service, a new article in Politico not only asserts that President Obama is in danger, but suggests that an attempt on his life may be the only way to reform the managerial culture of the agency.

Former Washington Post and Wall Street Journal reporter Ronald Kessler penned the column for Politico, addressing growing criticism of the Secret Service after several incidents that have called into question their ability to protect the lives of President Obama and the first family. Kessler took Secret Service Director Julia Pierson to task in his article, criticizing President Obama’s decision to not replace her, yet as The Huffington Post notes, the closing paragraph of Kessler’s missive stoked the ire of some political observers.

“Agents tell me it’s a miracle an assassination has not already occurred,” He wrote. “Sadly, given Obama’s colossal lack of management judgment, that calamity may be the only catalyst that will reform the Secret Service.”

Multiple publications reacted incredulously to Politico‘s column. Talking Points Memo questioned what Politico‘s editors were thinking, while Salon derided the column as “sickening.” Talking Points Memo summed up the reaction of many, while analyzing the implications of Kessler’s statement.

“So Obama is at fault for his inevitable assassination, or he’s the only thing standing in the way of cleaning up the agency responsible for his inevitable assassination. There’s a lot packed into that two sentence flourish. But all of it is deeply f’d up.”

Politico readers also chimed in on social media, sharing their reactions to the article.

@joshtpm@AdamSerwer Didn’t expect Politico to be front-runner in the ‘blame Obama for his own assassination’ sweepstakes. Good grief.

Politico‘s column comes after a difficult month for the Secret Service, during which two high profile incidents occurred that could have possibly put Mr. Obama’s life in danger. Earlier in September, an armed man jumped the White House fence, and was able to make it deep inside the building before being stopped by an off-duty agent. Just this week, it was revealed that the Secret Service had allowed an armed private security contractor with three prior convictions for assault into an elevator with President Obama, as the Inquisitr noted.